Alison Krauss & Union Station @ Regency Park Amphitheatre

Alison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglass
Koka Booth Amphitheatre, Regency Park
Sunday, May 29th, 2005

I got to the parking lot early to tailgate. My friends Bill and Heather, God bless them, did all the work and prepared food and beer for everyone! They're truly a god and goddess among men and women! I was a little disappointed to see that no one was out in the parking lot pickin', but then again, I didn't bring any instruments either. It's not really a Bluegrass feel at the Alison concert -- it was Cary, after all. I had more of the same feeling before the concert as I did for the Norah Jones show a couple of years ago at the same venue. Like most large shows there were your general "this is my one show a year" concert-goers, and they of course talked up a storm -- no concert attention span to speak of.

We got in to find pretty good seats on the lawn. I usually try to get reserved seats at Regency Park, but I was too slow this time and was happy to just get anything at all. Plus, it gave us that much more incentive to tailgate beforehand!

There was no scheduled opening act, but I'd heard a rumor in the parking lot that my favorite local Bluegrass band, Chatham County Line, had been pulled in at the last minute to open. I was thrilled! This wasn't all that far-fetched. There were a few instances in the past where local acts had been grabbed last minute -- Tift Merritt opened for Willie Nelson on this very stage, Thad Cockrell opened for Lyle Lovett and Bonnie Raitt a couple of years ago at the Alltel, and then when Mary Chapin Carpenter was sick before the Landmine Free World show, Tift filled in there too. So I was ecstatic! It made sense. If Alison was going to get a local Bluegrass act to open, CCL was definitely the right choice!

Except they didn't. There wasn't a real opener. Oh well, bummer. There was a side tent, though, and Vaughn Penn was playing her soulful folk-rock in it. I heard a bit while standing in line for beer. She's playing at the Six String this weekend, and I may head out that way.

It was a fairly nice crowd -- but different than the usual Bluegrass crowd. (I saw a couple acts of outright rudeness, but mostly everyone was just happy as could be!) I was trying to figure out where most of these folks had heard of Alison, but she's been around longer than I give her credit for, and she's been everywhere lately. I guess she gets around. It was interesting though, thinking that most of these folks aren't Bluegrassers, and yet the pre-show music track was some hardcore Bluegrass. I heard several Tony Rice songs, something I think was Peter Rowan, some Mountain Heart, and some other stuff I couldn't recognize, but clearly straight-up Bluegrass. I think it's good for a lot of these folks who think of Alison as a would-be pop star to get that deep grass vibe -- builds character!

Alison and the gang were really on, and Alison more so than usual. I often complain about how Alison's such a fiddle tease. She's got so many fantastic instrumentalists in her band, and she of course sings, that I think she holds back her fiddle leads and fills. She usually just chops, taking maybe one or two breaks a night. This night, however, was very different! She was playing lots of fiddle breaks and fills throughout all the new songs and several of the old! I was in heaven. (I love you Alison!)

Usually quiet, she was far more outgoing this year (and at Merlefest too!). I was amazed by her goofy, kooky stories, punctuated with fake accents and that great laugh. There was lots of banter between her and the band, and it really gave us more of a look into their personalities than I remember seeing in the past. She duplicated her "Dan Tyminski as George Clooney's butt-double" joke from Merlefest, but it was still funny. She also spent some time harrassing Barry Bales for his hunting, which was also amusing -- full of colorful euphemisms for "killing." This new chattiness was a welcome change, though, because I think she had been a little shyly stand-offish in the past. Afterwards I overheard a few folks laughingly remark, very affectionately, "that Alison's a nut!" I think it would've pleased her.

They played a single two and a half hour set, full of their classic standards and stuff from their new album. I was sad that Take Me For Longing seems to have been dropped from their standard list, but all in all, all my other favorites were there. I don't recall hearing any new or unexpected songs, though. They were all from the live album or Lonely Runs Both Ways or from the Merlefest gig. (Jerry played his new song, "Lil Row Row" from Merlefest.) Her voice was on, their instrumentals were great, and everyone had a good time. It was everything you expect from a AKUS concert -- uplifting, funny, and just perfect.

They came back to the stage for a three-song encore, the same they did for Merlefest if I remember correctly. She and Dan Tyminski sang a hauntingly beautiful a cappella version of My Ain True Love from the Cold Mountain soundtrack, then they were joined by Ron Block and Barry Bales singing baritone and bass on Down To the River To Pray from O Brother. After that they played one of my favorites from the new album, Living Prayer written by Ron Block. It's funny, I think, but I like Ron's songs better when Alison sings them... I guess I'm just funny that way. (Heh!)

Anyway, I was thinking about how great it was for this seemingly very pop-oriented, Bluegrass-newbie audience to hear four-part Gospel harmony on Down To the River To Pray. The crowd was very quiet and respectful during this, some people even gasping. There's plenty more where that came from folks! Of course, Alison and her boys just do it so damn well it's hard to compete.

All in all, I, of course, just love Alison Krauss. I love what she's doing for the music, and I love how much people love her. I look forward to a long, long life of attending her concerts and listening to her albums. No one better let me down or I'll be pissed!